The Lok Sabha on Monday mourned the death of five of its former members, including former Union Minister Mohamed Maqbool Dar and veteran parliamentarian G M Banatwalla, besides Field Marshal Sam Manekshaw.

After the new members took the oath, Speaker Somnath Chatterjee took up obituary references and condoled the demise of Dar, Banatwalla, Chiman Bhai Shukla, a member from Gujarat, Gopeshwar, a trade unionist, and Ram Prakash Tripathi, a noted social worker.

Paying glowing tributes to Manekshaw, the Speaker said that in his demise the country had lost a great soldier, a rare military genius, a patriot and a hero who inspired a generation of his countrymen.

The 94-year old war hero, who passed away last month, was associated with several welfare projects for soliders and ex-servicemen even after his retirement, Chatterjee said.